Born Patricia Andrzejewski on this day in Brooklyn, New York, Pat Benatar (1953– ) began as a classically trained singer, then followed her dream into rock and roll, drawn to the raw power of voices like Robert Plant and the sound of Led Zeppelin.

“I believe there comes a time when everything just falls in line,” she sang in All Fired Up, and her voice proved it, clear, forceful, fearless.

Benatar trusted her own compass. “It’s always better to write your own songs,” she said. “I know what is best for me.”

Signed by Chrysalis Records in 1978, she released In the Heat of the Night, an early burst of passion and power. In the years that followed, she became one of the defining female rock artists of the 1980s, with songs that refused to shrink, including Heartbreaker, Hit Me With Your Best Shot, Hell Is for Children, and I Need a Lover.

“You know history being history, everything that comes before has some impact on what follows, but you never really know how much,” she explained.

In 1982, on Maui, she married Neil Giraldo, her guitarist and creative partner. Benatar said he “unlocked the passion” in her voice, and together they built a sound that felt like power with a purpose, a refusal to accept anything less than respect.

“When he started to play aggressively, my voice opened up,” she said. “I had stuff in there I didn’t even know I had.”

After the September 11, 2001 tragedy at the World Trade Center, Benatar recorded Christmas in America. “I can’t remember ever being affected by anything like that,” she said. “I grew up in New York and watched them build the towers.”

“We write songs that are reflective of the time that you’re at.” And when the world is shaken, sometimes the truest strength is simple, steady, and lived one day at a time.